Welcome to Avaslan

Thank you for visiting Avaslan. This website is named after the ancestral farm of my Zlotover ancestors, which was situated on the banks of the Venta river in Northern Lithuania.

The four grandparental branches of my family tree all originated from the same corner of the Pale of Settlement. The family all left Heim in the late 1880s with most emigrating to England or Ireland. These days family members are spread throughout the world - from China to Australia, US, Israel and everywhere inbetween.

My genealogy research has been predominately focused in the triangle bordered by Vilnius in Lithuania and Riga and Liepaja in Latvia. In earlier times, this was largely known as the Duchy of Courland.

During my researches, I have traipsed through tumbled down cemeteries, waded in remote streams in search of ruined watermills and attended emotional memorial services in the killing fields of Skede. I have also met local dignitaries and on one occasion even had drinks with the British ambassador to Latvia on board a Royal Navy warship in Liepaja.

Most importantly, I have met some wonderful people and made contact with many members of my increasingly extended family.

I have also learnt much about the tragic history of the sthetls and towns my family left behind. We were fortunate. The oppressive May Laws of 1882 were a blessing in disguise. This website is dedicated to the millions who did not or could not escape the Tzarist pogroms only to find themselves consumed by the unimaginable horros of the holocaust.

A great deal of research was conducted on the internet, which you obviously can have without having checked out some decent broadband deals. Checking this kind of stuff out and getting the best deals is good for your aa savings account or whatever you have, meaning you wont have to get any aa loans from theaa.com just to make ends meet